Pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays and former Los Angeles Dodgers headed back to Korea to wrap up his career.
According to reports, the agreement is done, and Ryu will become the highest-paid player in league history According to Yoo:
Hyun-Jin Ryu, a free agent pitcher, has signed with the Hanwha Eagles, and the team will make the announcement on Wednesday (Korean time). He is anticipated to surpass all other players in the KBO in salary. From 2006 to 2012, Ryu pitched for the Eagles in his debut. was the 2006 MVP and Rookie of the Year.
Hyun-Jin Ryu, a free agent left-hander, is supposedly getting ready to return to his home country of South Korea to wrap out his KBO career.
Jee-Ho Yoo of Korean Baseball Insider reports:
The South Korean baseball team Hanwha Eagles have requested a status check on free agent pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin, who is poised to rejoin them, according to people acquainted with the situation who spoke to the media on Tuesday.
According to the reports, Major League Baseball (MLB) was formally contacted by the Eagles via the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) office to inquire on Ryu’s status.
Any KBO club wishing to get in touch with a player who is either on a big league club’s roster or under contract with one must first verify the player’s status through the MLB Commissioner’s Office, per an agreement between the two organizations.
MLB is required to reply in that case within four business days.
After a 12-year absence, this seems to be one of the last measures the Eagles need to take to get Ryu back.
Even while team officials stated that wasn’t the case, reports originating from South Korea claimed that the agreement was finalized. In any case, there seems to be a very good chance Ryu will decide against signing a contract with a major league team. Major league teams have expressed interest in Ryu; we’ve heard that he’s linked to the San Diego Padres only some weeks prior.
With the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays throughout his ten years in the major leagues, Ryu, at thirty-six, has a lifetime record of 78-48. With a stellar 3.27 ERA, he was the MLB leader in ERA (2.32) in 2019.
In addition, he won double-digit games in four different seasons and was named to the All-Star squad that same season.